C'mon
by Lisden
Summary: Jess persuaded Rory to enter his world. (Slow but steady wins the update race)
1. Default Chapter

Ok, First of all, I do not own these characters, someone else does. 2nd, I am a girl, don't be confused by the name Lisden, I have cruel parents. 3rd of all the story takes place sometime after Dean and Rory break up. I think that's just about it.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"I'm not Dean, Rory." Jess told her calmly, turning to face her. "I know." Rory answered, taking his hand. "So if we're gonna make this relationship work, I can't have you comparing me to him. I don't sit home on Saturday nights, I don't drink tea, and I'm very impatient." He said, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Glad you know yourself so well," Rory replied, "and I won't have you comparing me to Shane or any of your other conquests. I'm not a slut, I appreciate the smaller things in life, and I don't have bleached blond hair or an annoying whinny voice. Jess, I know what I'm getting into, and I jumping right in. Willingly." Jess looked into her eyes and kissed her, hard and passionately. "Wouldn't have it any other way." He told her, smiling and taking her by the wrists.  
  
  
  
"What are we doing here, Jess?" Rory asked him, as he let himself into the diner with his key. The lights were all off and he led her through the dark to the stairs, where he pushed her back against the wall and kissed her. Hard. When he stopped, she could barley breath. "Luke." She began, pushing him away from her. "Isn't home." Jess finished for her, leaning in for another kiss. Rory turned her head away. "Jess, no." She said firmly, "I'm not ready. I don't know what I want." Jess sat down on a step, pulling Rory down with him. "Rory. I know what you want. You want me. I can feel it. I your eyes. In your breath, and in your pulse." Rory's breath quickened and Jess brought his fingers up to caress her cheek before kissing her again. "and you need this. You need to know how it feels. You're curious." Jess reasoned, standing up, and putting out his hand, "C'mon." Rory stayed sitting for a minute, contemplating. Everything he had said was true. She did want him. And she was so, so curious. She stood up, and gave Jess her hand. He smiled and pulled her up to his room.  
  
Once they were safely inside with the door locked, Rory began to get nervous. Jess stepped over to her, and put his hand on her shoulder. "You're trembling." He whispers quietly. "Sorry." Rory said, smiling slightly, "I'm nervous." "Don't be." Jess reassured her, as he slowly began to kiss her. The kiss got harder and harder and more powerful. Jess' hands, which had been around Rory's waist, came up to start to undo the buttons on her shirt. When her got it off, he started on the clasp of her bra, which fell from her body. Jess stopped kissing Rory to stare. "Stop it, Jess. I'm blushing." She said shyly, folding her arms over her breasts. "You're so beautiful." He breathed. She squirmed a bit. He reached around her waist and pulled her closer. "Put your arms above your head." He instructed her, and reluctantly, shyly, she did so. Jess began to kiss her, kissing her neck, and then finally getting lower to her breasts. He slowly took her nipple into his mouth and gently sucked. Rory closed her eyes and gasped in pleasure. Her knees went week and she started to fall, but Jess caught her. "Maybe we shouldn't do this standing up." He said, picking her up and carrying her over to the bed. He lay her down, and began kissing her breasts again, going lower and lower towards her belly button which he flicked his tongue into. Then he came back up and kissed her on the lips. Rory brought her hands to the hemline of his shirt and tugged upwards. She had to move her lips away from his to get the shirt past. Jess started to undo the buttons of her jeans, but she stopped him. "No!" Rory yelled, "I'm sorry, Jess. I thought I could, but.I.I can't." Her eyes were wet with tears as she got up and found her shirt. Jess lay back on the bed. "God Dammit, Rory." He sighed, closing his eyes. Rory had been almost to the door, but she stopped and turned to him. "I'm sorry, Jess. Really. It's just, I'm not ready. There's that, and then there's Dean, and I just.can't. Are you alright?" She asked him, nervously. "Nothing a few million cold showers can't fix." Jess replied, "But someday, Rory, I swear.I'm gonna have you." Rory didn't reply. She just walked out the door.  
  
  
  
When Rory stepped out the front door of Luke's Diner, eyes still wet with tears, she was surprised to see Dean standing there. "I don't believe it." He said, coming up beside Rory. "Dean it's not what you think." She started to say, but he interrupted her. "You let him.How the hell could you let him take you, Rory. I agreed to sit on my hands until you were ready, and the minute we break up, what do you do? Just lay back and let Jess fuck you?" Dean was screaming now, but there was no one on the deserted street to hear him. Rory started crying again, but Dean kept yelling. "Do you know how many girls have come out of that apartment at this time of night? You mean nothing to him, Rory. And I never thought you were so stupid. Why were you so stupid? HUH? Answer me!" Dean asked her, grabbing hold of her elbow. "Dean, let me go!" Rory screamed, trying to pull away. Dean held on. "Why would you sleep with him and not me?" he demanded, shaking her. "Dean, stop it! You're hurting me." Rory was a little scared now. Dean didn't let go. He pulled her closer to him, as if he was going to kiss her. "Let her go, man." Came a voice from behind them. Dean whirled around. He let go of Rory, who ran to Jess. He had heard screaming, and looked out the window, just in time to see Dean grab Rory. Jess hadn't even had time to put a shirt on. When Rory ran to him, he opened his arms and held her tightly. "What the hell's the problem here?" Jess demanded, glaring at Dean. "The problem, "Dean started, stepping closer to Jess, "Is that you just stuck it to my girlfriend." Jess pulled Rory behind him and stepped closer to Dean. "She's not your girlfriend. And I didn't "stick it to" anybody." He said sharply. Rory pulled him back a little. "No, you just always run around shirtless with Rory's bra in your back pocket." Dean scoffed. Rory blushed, and took it from him. "You forgot it." Jess muttered to her. Rory pulled on his arm. "Come on, Jess." She said, as they made their way towards the door of the diner, "I don't want you fighting him." "Yah! Go fuck him again why don't you, Rory?" Dean screamed after them. 


	2. Chapter 2

Jess walked Rory home that night. They walked along slowly, hand in hand. Rory looked up at Jess, who looked like he was deep in thought.  
  
"He's not like that, you know." She said quietly. Jess looked at her skeptically.  
  
"You sure about that? Because I don't know him that well, and that's how he's always been to me. But jealousy can do a lot to a person, Rory. I know. I felt it when you were going out with him." Jess told her. They walked along in silence until they reached the Gilmore house. They stopped on the porch.  
  
"Get some sleep." Jess said, as he started to turn away.  
  
"What are you doing tomorrow?" Rory asked, stopping him.  
  
"Rory, are you sure that I'm who you want to be with? Cuz maybe you should take some time to make up your mind." Jess asked, turning back to her.  
  
"Jess, I don't want to be with Dean. I want to be with you. I don't need any time." With that, Rory pulled Jess to her and kissed him, long and hard. Jess didn't protest. Suddenly, the house door was pulled open, and Loralei came barging out.  
  
"God Dammit, Rory, where have you been?" She demanded, "I have been worried sick about you!" When she saw Jess standing, his cheeks flushed red, she stopped, grabbed Rory by the wrist, and pulled her into the house.  
  
"Stay away from her, Jess. Don't you ever talk to my little girl again!" With that, Loralei slammed the door. Jess sighed, and walked home.  
  
Once they were inside the house, Loralei sat Rory down on the couch, and sat beside her.  
  
"What did he do to you, Rory? It's OK, you can tell me, I won't blame you." She stared in a calm voice. Rory pulled her hand away from her mother's.  
  
"Nothing! He didn't do anything to me! I think I'm old enough and responsible enough to know when to say no, mom." Rory protested.  
  
"Aha! So there was something you had to say no to. I'll kill him, I swear, I'll." Loralei started to stand up, but Rory stood up too, and interrupted her.  
  
"Mom, calm down! He stopped! I asked him to, and he stopped! It was no big deal. You don't even know him, and you hate him. You jump to conclusions, and don't even think about me! Maybe I was the one who wanted to do everything.maybe he said no.you didn't even know until I told you! Everything I did, I wanted to do. And maybe next time, I won't say no!" Rory declared. Loralei shook her head sadly.  
  
"Look what he's done to you, Rory. He's poisoned your mind." She said.  
  
"You.You won't listen to me! I just.Arrrggg!" Rory let out a frustrated shriek, and spun around to stomp off to her room.  
  
"There won't be a next time!" Her mom shouted after her.  
  
Jess' sleep was suddenly interrupted by a very pissed off Luke the next morning.  
  
"Jess, what the hell did you do to her?" He demanded, flicking on the light. Jess opened his eyes reluctantly.  
  
"What are you talking about..what time is it?" He muttered, sitting up and letting the blankets fall to his waist.  
  
"I'm talking about Rory, and it's 10:30. Loralei just stormed in here and informed me that if you ever so much as look at Rory again, she'll have the Russian Mafia after you. When I inquired as to what she was talking about, she told me that you had Rory here late last night.did you?" Luke demanded. Jess closed his eyes, lay back down and groaned.  
  
"God, Luke, please leave me alone."  
  
"So it's true? Oh, Jess, why would you do that to Rory.What did you make her do?" Luke screamed at him.  
  
"I didn't "Make" her do anything! Everything she did, she wanted to do." Jess yelled back. Luke took a deep breath.  
  
"Just tell me.does Loralei have to take her to a doctor?" He asked Jess, calmly.  
  
"Huh? What do you mean." Jess asked him.  
  
"Is she.might she be pregnant." Jess understood, and smiled.  
  
"I didn't sleep with her, Luke." He assured him. Luke let out his breath that he had been holding.  
  
"Oh, Jess, thank God." He said, standing up, "Now get up an get dressed. I need you to take things over at the diner while I go and convince Loralei not to hate me forever for letting you live with me. You'd better stay away from Rory for a while.Jess, this isn't New York. Doing.well, the type of things that you do isn't as common here; we're a small town. Don't upset things, and don't spoil Rory. If you do, I swear I'll kick your ass and then send you back to New York. That's a promise." With that, Luke left the apartment and slammed the door. Jess sighed, and got out of bed.  
  
"So, did you sleep with him?" Lane asked Rory, while they were sitting on a bench in the park.  
  
"Excuse me?" Rory asked, surprised, "Who? What are you talking about?" Lane rolled her eyes.  
  
"C'mon, Rory, it's all over town how you were out late with Jess. My mom wouldn't shut up about how that boy was the devil. So, does Dean know? And where did you go? And, did you sleep with him or not?" Lane asked, impatiently, but with a smile.  
  
"Of course I didn't, Lane, I think you know me better than that! And Dean broke up with me." Rory told her, sitting back on the bench. Lane was shocked.  
  
"What? Why didn't you tell me? So, now you're doing the Jess thing. Be careful with him Rory. He's unstable. He's James Dean...he's...from New York." Lane told her, as if being from New York was a disease.  
  
"Lane, I know you don't like Jess, but give him a chance. He's really a good person, once you get to know him." Rory pleaded.  
  
"Ok, then, what DID you do with Jess last night?" Lane asked her, skeptically. Rory smiled. She wanted to tell Lane everything...about how she almost slept with Jess, and about how she wanted to, and about how Jess made her feel. But she couldn't.  
  
"We just hung out." Rory said. Lane looked disappointed.  
  
"I don't believe you for one minute." She replied, "And I think I'll ask Jess myself...cuz here he comes now." Rory spun around on the bench as Jess came up to them. He said nothing, but sat down beside Rory and pulled her into a hard kiss. Lane raised her eyebrows. When Jess stopped kissing Rory, he looked over at Lane.  
  
"Lane." He muttered in greeting, nodding his head.  
  
"Mr.Mariano." She said back, "What have you been up to lately?...besides ripping up the neighborhood with your lack of order and smart ass mouth, and bringing my best friend over to the darkside with you?" Lane's voice was sarcastically sweet. Rory shot her a warning look. Jess put up all his defenses.  
  
"Why don't you go do your homework, or pray or something." He asked her. Lane got up from the bench.  
  
"I'll call you, Rory." She snapped. Rory nodded as she spun off and walked away. When Lane had left the park, Rory turned to Jess.  
  
"Hey." She said, smiling.  
  
"Hi." He replied, taking her hand, standing up, and starting to walk. They walked along in silence, looking up at the birds singing. It wasn't a sunny day, but it was still warm. It was a weird feeling, walking along the park, holding hands with Jess, like she would a normal person. Rory suddenly spoke up.  
  
"How did you get to come here without Luke or anyone knowing?" She asked him, stopping.  
  
"Well, Luke was guarding the front entrance to the Diner, and he had Taylor watching from across the road, while Kirk watched the stairs from inside, so it was tough...But I'm a miracle worker." Jess replied, with a cocky grin.  
  
"Jess...I'm really sorry for causing you so much trouble. They all think it's your fault, and that we..."  
  
"Slept together." Jess offered.  
  
"Yah.", Rory said, blushing, "and they all hate you, and Lane's mom thinks you're the devil, and..."  
  
"Lane's mom probably thought the brave little toaster was the devil." Jess interrupted, "And they all hated me anyway. It's much better now that they have a reason." Rory sighed.  
  
"But I just think that it's not fair, since you didn't do anything, and you were a perfect gentleman," Rory blabbered on, "And I never even contemplated wanting to do some of the things I want to do with you with Dean, I never felt this way about him, and every time I kiss you, I feel something inside me and I just want to be as close to you as I possibly can..." Jess brought his finger to her lips to silence her. Rory turned bright red.  
  
"Oh, God, I didn't mean to say all that...you must think I'm such an amateur..." This time Jess silenced her with a kiss.  
  
"Some of the things you want to do with me?" He asked, when they stopped kissing. Rory blushed harder, and slowly nodded.  
  
"Like?..." Jess coaxed, bringing his arms down around her waist. When Rory didn't answer, he began kissing her slowly, the kiss getting deeper and deeper. He brought his lips to her neck ad kissed her there, and Rory felt the ecstacy building inside her as she closed her eyes. Jess brought his hand up to her breast, and his lips back up to her mouth, but he was suddenly ripped violently away from her.  
  
"Get the hell away from her, Jess!" Luke shouted, yanking him by the wrist.  
  
"What the fuck?...." Jess yelled, pushing Luke away from him hard, sending his falling to the ground.  
  
"Jess, don't!" Rory screamed. Loralei came running over to her.  
  
"Rory, honey, are you alright?" She asked frantically, hugging her.  
  
"I'm fine, Mom." Rory said, pulling out of her grasp, and running to Jess. Luke started to stand up slowly from the ground. Jess offered his hand.  
  
"I'm sorry, Luke." He muttered, but Luke wouldn't take his hand. He stood up on his own.  
  
"I told you to stay away from her, Jess." Luke said, with warning in his voice. Jess shook his head in disbelief.  
  
"Why? WHY? I'm no different than Dean, and when he was dating Rory nobody ripped them apart, barricaded him in his room, or thought he was the devil! What the hell do you think I'm going to do to her?" Jess asked.  
  
"The same thing you did to Shane, and probably many girls from where you used to live." Luke shot back.  
  
"How the hell do you know what I did with Shane or anyone?" Jess asked, incredulously.  
  
"I'm not stupid, Jess. You have condoms in your bedside drawer, handcuffs in you closet, and you once had Shane's bra in the back of your car! I'm not blind, and I was a teenage boy once myself." Luke yelled at him. Loralei stepped up to him.  
  
"...and don't you ever talk about Dean. You didn't know him. We trusted Dean because he was a good kid...had a good job, didn't get into any car crashes and he had morals. Get out of my daughter's life, Jess. Forever." She said, and then grabbed Rory's hand, and pulled her away. Luke shook his head.  
  
"C'mon. Lets go home before you cause anymore trouble." Luke muttered, as he walked back to the Diner.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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AN- Sorry that this is, like, the smallest chapter in the history of the world. I haven't had time to update, and probably won't until New Year. You Americans have really busy holidays. Merry Christmas!  
  
PS- For fans of "Rebel Yell", It has been removed since it was inappropriate. I had it saved on a disk, but I lost it. When I find it, or if I find it, I will put the story up on my website, the London Underground, and you can read it there. In the meantime, if anyone has it saved or anything like that I would be forever in dept to you if you could send it to me. Sorry that the plug was pulled on that. Cheers, Lisden. 


	3. Chapter 3

Rory sat in her room at 10'o'clock at night reading. It had been a week since the little episode in the park, and she hadn't seen Jess since. Loralei had put her under house arrest, though she had been bringing over visitors. Rory suspected that the main function of the visitors were to make her forget about Jess. There had been Lane, and Paris, and her grandparents had brought soup (they had been told that Rory was sick), but the visitor that disturbed her most was Dean. Her mom had invited Dean over, probably hoping to get them back together. Dean had seemed to be no longer mad at Rory, although he looked and talked to her like she was a mental patient.  
  
"It's ok, Rory, We'll get him out of your life." Dean had said, smiling.  
  
"I don't want him out of my life...I miss him...I need him." Rory had protested defiantly, but Dean had just kept smiling and shaking his head sadly. Rory was convinced that everyone had gone crazy. She turned her thoughts back to her book, until she heard a tapping sound at her window. Cautiously, she got up from her bed and crept over to it. When she saw who it was, she threw up the window, and dragged him inside. She clung her arms around him like she was clinging on for dear life, and buried her head in his neck.  
  
"Happy to see me?" Jess asked, slightly amused.  
  
"God, yes." Rory told him, loosening her grip a bit, "I thought that I might never see you again, that you'd gone off and gotten some new girlfriend or something." She lead him over to her bed and sat down.  
  
"I wouldn't do that to you, Rory. I...well, I don't really know what I feel, but I know that I've never felt like this with any other girl before. It's like, sex isn't enough. I can't just sleep with you, or anyone, and make it go away. I think I love you, Rory." Jess said, quietly.  
  
"What?" Rory asked, in a whisper.  
  
"I'm in love with you, and it's killing me, because I'm not used to needing anything. I'm not supposed to care about anything this much. It's bad for my image." Jess shrugged. Rory stared at him for a moment.  
  
"It would be nice if you would maybe, say something." Jess told her, taking her hand. Rory took a deep breath.  
  
"I think...I think I love you too." She said simply. Jess leaned over and kissed her, hard enough to take her breath away. It got harder and deeper, and Jess brought his hands up to her breasts. He kissed her neck, making her moan. Jess pulled away, and stood up.  
  
"Fuck!" He muttered, going over to the window. Rory was hurt.  
  
"What?" She asked, sounding a little bit pissed. Jess turned around and looked at her. Then he sank to the floor with his back up against the wall.  
  
"I don't know what to do with you, Rory." He replied, not taking his eyes off her. Rory was confused.  
  
"Excuse me?" She asked, irritated, "You don't know what to do with me?" She crossed her arms. Jess almost smiled, but thought better of it.  
  
"You...You're not like anybody else...like Shane, or anyone. With them I never had to worry about what to do. It was always like, Hey Jess, here I am, come take me. And I did. But with you..." He trailed off, not knowing what to say.  
  
"But with me, what?" Rory demanded. Jess looked up at her again.  
  
"But with you, it's different. I can't just...and I don't even know if I want to, because you're so amazing, and Luke's right, I don't want to spoil you. You're perfect just the way you are, little innocent Rory, and that's part of who I love." He finished, leaning his head back against the wall. Rory made a decision then and there. Little innocent Rory? She'll show him little and innocent. She got up from the bed, stood in front of Jess and declared,  
  
"Hey, Jess. Here I am. Come take me." Jess shook his head.  
  
"You don't know what you're saying Rory." He told her. Rory grabbed his hand, and pulled him to his feet.  
  
"I know exactly what I'm saying, "Rory announced, " And I want you to take me now, Jess. And if you don't because you're to worried about "spoiling me", then I'll march over to New York and find your cool New York friends, and tell them that you had a chance to fuck me and you didn't. Then you'll be shamed." Jess looked amused.  
  
"Now I have cool New York friends?" He asked, smiling.  
  
"Yah, and your reputation will be ruined. You will no longer be suave, apathetic Jess Mariano. You'll be....you'll be...Dean." Rory spat at him. She knew that that would get him going. Or, at least she hoped it would. It worked.  
  
"God Dammit, Rory!" Jess said to her, and her grabbed her around the waist and pulled her to him. He kissed her so hard, it nearly took her breath away, and he started to lift up her shirt.  
  
"Wait." Rory whispered. She went to the door of her room, listened to it for a second, but then pulled it open and led Jess out into the dark hallway.  
  
"Where are we going?" He whispered loudly. Rory put her finger to his lips and mouthed "My mother." Then she led Jess down the stairs and into the basement... 


	4. Chapter 4

In the corner of the basement, there was a small guestroom, which the Gilmore's used only for guests. Rory pulled Jess down there, and shut the door behind her. She grabbed Jess and kissed him, and when she took off his shirt he gazed at her for a moment, a look of question in his eyes. In seconds, that look of question became a look of anticipation. When he touched Rory, she was shaking.  
  
"Rory." He started to say, but she put her finger to his lips.  
  
"Don't say anything, Jess. If you do, I'll change my mind. I don't want you to be responsible and loving Jess. I want you to be rough, rebel, promiscuous Jess." Rory told him. Jess thought about it for a minute, debating. Would it be wrong for him to do this? Hey, she asked for it, it wasn't his fault. He wanted her so badly it hurt, and there she was, offering herself to him. How could he refuse? Luke would kill him.To hell with Luke. He probably hadn't gotten laid in years.but Rory was different from other girls.he didn't want to ruin her. Taking someone's virginity was kinda a big deal.Fuck that.  
  
"Ok." Jess resolved, as he pulled Rory to him and crushed his lips to hers. Rory gave herself in to Jess entirely; he was the one with all the experience. She let him take off her shirt and her bra, and she undid the top button of his jeans. He stopped kissing to watch her, as she slowly drew the zipper down. Then, stepping out of his jeans, he brought Rory over to the bed. While she stared up at him with her big, bright eyes, Jess took her pants off. Left only in her panties, Rory blushed, and began to wonder if she was doing the right thing, but when Jess kissed her again, she forgot about it. She closed her eyes as he slowly removed her pink underwear, and bit her lip as he began to touch her. His taste was amazing, his fingers worked ecstasy. As he made love to her, Rory was lost in everything but Jess. Several times he asked her if she was all right, and she nodded. He brought her to the end of the earth and back again.  
  
When it was over, they lay silently, breathing hard, in eachothers arms. Rory fell asleep, and Jess watched her. She looked beautiful when she slept, her chest rising and falling. He wanted to touch her, but Jess was afraid he'd wake her. The truth was, she had been an amazing lover; better than almost everybody he'd had before. And this was her first time; so with some practice. wow. Jess had every intention of sticking around to find out just how sensational she could be. He fell asleep thinking about that, and dreamt of only Rory.  
  
They woke up to screaming. Rory wasn't sure of where she was, but feeling Jess' arms around her, she remembered and almost smiled. Almost. She didn't get the chance, as she opened her eyes to find her mother and Luke looking shocked. She sat up in bed right away, and modestly covered herself with the sheets. Jess sat up in a daze, yawning.  
  
"Rory..." Loralei said shakily, " How could you." She burst into tears, and ran out of the basement. Luke was more sensible. Shaking his head, he began picking up articles of clothing and throwing them to Jess. He and Rory began dressing quickly.  
  
"I don't believe you," Luke said in a firm but sad voice, "Jess, the one thing I asked you not to do. You're going back to New York." Jess started to protest defiantly, but Rory interrupted him.  
  
"Luke, No! It was my fault...I.I asked him to. He didn't want to, he didn't think I was ready, but I made him!" She shouted. Luke looked at her sadly.  
  
"Nobody made him, Rory. I'm sorry he got to you, made you think you wanted him.but he doesn't care about you. He never did. Listen to me Rory, you're just another of his conquests." Luke told her. Rory stopped for a moment, thinking about what he was saying. But then she looked at Jess and knew that none of it was true.  
  
"Don't listen to him, Rory. I love you. I've always." Jess began, sounding choked. Luke pushed him out the door, and up the basement stairs. Rory ran after them and caught up to them at the door. Ignoring Luke, she gave Jess a quick kiss.  
  
"I know. I love you too." Rory whispered in his ear, as Luke pulled him out into the morning sunlight, and down the street. Rory sat down on her porch as cried as the birds sang.  
  
  
  
  
  
"I need to see him, Lane." Rory pleaded with her best friend, as she sat on Lane's couch. Lane shook her head.  
  
"I don't understand.why is he so important to you?" Lane asked. She had heard a lot of rumors lately, about Rory and Jess. She had heard that they had slept together and that Luke and Loralei had walked in on them. But she was sure that if that had been true, Rory would have told her. And anyway, she had also heard that Rory and Jess has run away to Vegas and joined the mob, so who knew what was true. Rory sighed.  
  
"I love him Lane.I know you don't think it's possible, but I swear, he's an awesome person. He's sweet, and loving, and.a perfect gentleman." She gushed. Lane rolled her eyes. She was used to Rory going on and on this way about Dean, but.Jess? Perfect gentleman? Hardly.  
  
"I have to see him. What if Luke is sending him away? He said he was going to send him away.back to New York." Rory went on. Lane was suspicious.  
  
"Why would he say that?" she asked her friend. Rory turned red.  
  
"Lane, do you swear on.on your mother finding out about your band that you won't say a thing?" She asked Lane, lowering her voice to a whisper. Lane crossed her heart.  
  
"I won't say anything.What?" she asked, curiously. Rory took a deep breath.  
  
"He said that when.when he caught me in bed with Jess." She admitted quickly, looking down at her lap.  
  
"I knew it," Lane exclaimed, "So it's true! Wow, Rory, you.you.wow." Rory blushed harder.  
  
"Yah, I. Do you hate me, or think I'm a slut, or something?" She asked. Lane hugged her.  
  
"Oh, God, Rory, no! I'm just surprised, but I think if you thought you were ready, that's for you to decide." Lane told her. Rory looked up.  
  
"So." Lane asked, "are you going to tell me about it like a good best friend, or do I have to guess?" Rory sat back on the couch and smiled.  
  
"Thanks, Lane. For understanding."  
  
"No problem.Now, details, girl." Lane demanded.  
  
"Oh, wow, Lane.It was.He was amazing." Rory began, and she told Lane the whole thing. It felt good to be able to tell someone.  
  
"And he's gonna have to go back to New York, and.I love him." She finished up, almost in tears. Lane thought for a moment, and then picked up her phone.  
  
"Who are you calling." Rory asked, but Lane silenced her. In a moment someone must have picked up the phone.  
  
"Hey, Luke, it's Lane." Lane told the person on the other line, apparently Luke, "Yah, hi. I'm fine." Rory sat quietly and listened to the one sided conversation.  
  
"Listen, I kinda need a favor. Do you know whether or not Jess owns the book 'The Last Samurai'? I want to read it, but can't get it from the library cuz Mom monitors the books I get there.well, Luke, could you ask him? You know I don't really want to talk to him. Well, it's not that I don't like him.. Ok, you're right, I don't.Well, I suppose I could talk to him. Just for a minute. Ok, I'll wait." Lane gave Rory a thumbs up as she waited. Jess came on the line.  
  
"Hi, Jess. This is Lane.Yah, do you have that book? You do! Awesome. Listen, could I maybe borrow it for a while.why? Where are you going? What?! Just a sec." Lane put her hand over the receiver.  
  
"He's leaving in two hours!" She whispered. Rory sat up straight, and grabbed the phone from her.  
  
"Jess.Oh, God, Jess, you can't leave.I love you too, but." Rory started crying into the phone, and Lane took it from her.  
  
"Jess? Hey, listen. Come over here. My mom's not home. Tell Luke that you're bringing me that book, and that I can't go get it because my mom would have a fit. Just hurry up, before Rory has a mental breakdown." With that, Lane hung up the phone.  
  
  
  
Jess was there in minutes. He ran through the front door to where Rory was on the couch and hugged her tightly. Rory grabbed him and kissed him, and kissed him, and kissed him until Lane cleared her throat uncomfortably. Jess pulled away the kiss, but didn't stop staring into Rory's eyes.  
  
"Jess.don't go." She whispered to him, holding him around the neck for dear life. Jess looked up at Lane.  
  
"Yeah, yeah.I'm leaving." Lane muttered, and got up to go to her bedroom. Jess stared to say something, but Lane stopped him.  
  
"Please," she told him, turning to leave, "No smart ass comments today." She started for the door, but stopped when she heard Jess' voice.  
  
"Thanks, Lane. You're not so bad, you know." She smiled, then turned around.  
  
"No problem, "Lane replied, "Now hurry it up.you've only got about an hour." Winking at Rory, Lane left the room. Jess turned back to Rory, and kissed her again. Rory looked around.  
  
"We can't do it here." She commented, pushing Jess away from her.  
  
"Why not?" He inquired, with that cocky smile playing on his lips. Rory started to put up an argument, but Jess' kiss was more convincing. He sat on the couch and pulled Rory up so she was sitting on his lap. She lay her head back an allowed him to kiss her neck, and then lower to her breasts. He lifted her shirt, unfastened her bra, and started to suck a nipple. Jess unbuttoned his pants, and Rory's and he took her without removing any of their other clothes. When they both came, and had caught their breath, Rory stood up.  
  
"Ok, you've ruined my pants." She complained, pretending to be mad. Jess smiled, but kept his eyes closed, leaning back against the couch.  
  
"Sorry." He replied. After they had cleaned up, and looked presentable, Jess looked at the clock.  
  
"God Dammit," He cursed. Rory looked at him.  
  
"No. It's not time to leave yet," She said frantically.  
  
"I have to.I leave in 10 minutes." Jess said, his voice deep with regret. Rory ran to him and threw her arms around him. She buried her head in his neck and cried. Jess almost cried too, but stopped himself just in time. He pulled head up and kissed her, one long hard kiss.  
  
"I have to go." He told her, pulling away, and starting to walk towards the door. When he got there he turned back.  
  
"I love you, Rory." Jess said simply. Rory stopped crying, and walked over to him.  
  
"What if you never come back." She asked, wiping her eyes with her hand.  
  
"Don't be so dumb.of course I'm coming back. And I'll call you. Everyday if It'll make you feel better." Jess assured her.  
  
"I love you." Rory whispered, hugging him.  
  
"I love you, too. I always will." He replied. Kissing her one last long time, he turned and walked down the driveway. Jess looked back once, and gave Rory an encouraging smile, before turning down the street. Rory collapsed into tears, and Lane came down the stairs to hug her.  
  
"It's Ok," Lane comforted, "It's not like New York is the other side of the world."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
AN-  
  
Hey, everyone. Let me just warn you that there's a surprise coming and you may not like it. Please review this, and give me suggestions and stuff. Hope you like it so far.  
  
~~Lisden. 


	5. Chapter 5

~Five years or so later~  
  
  
  
Rory sat in her apartment and thought about her life. It had been five years since she had graduated from Chilton, and she was nowhere near who she thought she would be, but she was happy. Everyone had been surprised when she had announced that she and Paris would be moving to New York to start their own law firm. She hadn't seen anyone for a long time; her mother had visited in March, and her grandparents came up once and a while, but other than that, she missed Stars Hollow. She missed Lane, and she even missed Dean. They had put aside their differences and become friends, though their relationship was never the same. But most of all, she missed Jess. Rory hadn't seen him since they had dragged him off; she hadn't heard from him and she hadn't heard about him. But that was in the past. Rory pulled her feet up to her chin on her chair and sipped her coffee, staring blankly out the window. Paris was out in court, and wouldn't be home for a while.  
  
"Honey? I'm back." came a voice from the kitchen, where the door was. Rory got out of her chair and ran to Rubin, throwing her arms around him and giving him a welcome home kiss.  
  
"How was your day?" She asked him, smiling warmly, as he took off his coat and hung it on the hook. He was very handsome, Rory thought to herself. She had met him two years ago at an office party and they had hit it off. They had been together ever since.  
  
"It was fine. The usual boring stuff." Rubin told her, setting his briefcase down in the kitchen. One of the reasons Rory like Rubin so much was his light personality. He was always happy, and always kept an optimistic view of everything.  
  
"Awesome. So, do you have to work anymore tonight?" Rory asked him, slipping her hands around his waist.  
  
"Luckily, no." He replied with a smile, kissing her. She sighed happily, and they settled down to watch a movie before going to bed.  
  
  
  
The next morning was the usual frantic morning. Rory made pancakes while Paris and Rubin bustled around getting ready for work. On her way past Rory to get to the bathroom, Rory stopped Paris.  
  
"Hey. You were home late last night." Rory commented while flipping pancakes.  
  
"Yah, you wouldn't believe this case. The jury didn't get back until at least eleven. I suppose they think that I've got nothing better to do besides sit around an office and wait for them." Paris said, rolling her eyes and continuing to the bathroom. Rubin came up behind her and kissed her neck.  
  
"I've gotta go, Ror." He told her, looking hungrily at the pancakes.  
  
"No time for breakfast?" Rory asked him, motioning with her spatula.  
  
"Nope." Rubin replied, regretfully, "but I might be home early, you never know. See ya." Rory turned around so he could kiss her once, before he ran out the door. After she and Paris had gobbled down the pancakes, Rory drove them both to their neat little law office. Paris went out on a case, while Rory stayed behind to answer phones and do some paper work. She had no particular case at the moment. Clients came in and out of the office all day, some wanting advice, some wanting estimates. Rory was very busy and made a mental note to hire a secretary. Paris came back and started helping, so things were a bit less hectic. At around three in the afternoon, a client with blond, curly hair walked in, almost in tears. Once Rory had her calmed down, Rory brought her into a private office room and sat her down.  
  
"Ok, Miss, would you like to tell me what's the problem." She asked the woman quietly. The woman looked up.  
  
"I'm really sorry," She said, "It's just that I've never been charged with anything before. And no I'm being charged with nuisance, and I don't know what to do." The woman was almost in tears. Rory smiled at her.  
  
"It's alright, nuisance isn't that serious, so you can't go to jail, and people are rarely successful at suing for it. Would you tell me how you are a nuisance?" Rory asked her calmly. The woman blushed.  
  
"It's just.Well, gee, this is really very embarrassing for me. You see, the people in the apartment next door to mine and my husbands are charging me with.disturbing the peace." The woman said. Rory shook her head.  
  
"I don't understand," she relied, "What for?"  
  
"We.um.well, during lovemaking." The woman went on, bright red, "I'm very.vocal."  
  
"Oh!" Rory said, surprised, "Well.uh, I suppose I can take your case. You'll have to give me some more details than that." The woman smiled.  
  
"Thanks, honey, I knew you'd understand. We're not so different, you and I. We're about the same age, and I couldn't bear to go to some old, stuffy lawyers who would laugh at my case. What sort of details do you need?" The woman asked.  
  
"I guess I'll need to know how long you've lived in the apartment, and how long you've been.vocal, as you put it. I'll also need to meet your husband, and speak with your neighbors and their attorney." Rory said reasonably, as she stood up, "By the way, I'm Rory Gilmore." Rory extended her hand.  
  
"Nice to meet you, Miss. Gilmore. I'm Patty. And I do appreciate your help. We've live in this apartment ever since we got married, I guess that's.3 years. My husband and I live there with my son, who's going to be one in July. As to how long I've been "vocal", I guess as long as I've known my husband. I don't like to brag, but he is amazing in bed." Patty winked, as Rory led her to the front door. Rory laughed.  
  
"Well, I guess we should arrange a meeting between me, you and your husband. When's good for you?" She asked Patty, taking out her agenda. Patty thought for a moment.  
  
"Well, it's going to be a really busy week. How does lunch tomorrow sound?" she asked Rory, as she slipped her coat on. Rory thought about her day.  
  
"Yes, I guess that would be fine." She said, nodding, and writing it in her agenda. Then she smiled and shook hands with Patty.  
  
"It's was nice to meet you." Patty said, as she closed the office door behind her. Rory sighed, and went back to work.  
  
That night at home, Paris told her something very interesting.  
  
"You'll never guess who I'm defending, Rory!" She exclaimed, as they sat down to supper.  
  
"Who?" Rory asked, interested. Rubin, who wasn't very interested in Law, kept eating.  
  
"Tristian!" Paris told her. Rory almost choked.  
  
"You're kidding me! What did he do?" She asked, intrigued. Rubin looked up.  
  
"Who's Tristian?" he asked, mildly interested. The girls ignored him.  
  
"Bank fraud." Paris said, laughing, "Can you believe it?" Rory laughed, too.  
  
"How is he?" She asked.  
  
"Gorgeous as ever." Paris commented, going back to her meal.  
  
"Better looking than me?" Rubin asked, joking.  
  
"Hell yes, if he's anything like I remember him." Rory said coyly.  
  
"Hey, watch it!" Rubin laughed, punching her playfully on the shoulder. Paris rolled her eyes.  
  
"Ah, true love." She drawled, in a French accent. Then she stood up.  
  
"I'll do the dishes. You two can occupy yourselves anyway you feel like it." She said, and giving Rory a wink, Paris started to clear the dishes. Rubin took Rory's hand and pulled her into the bedroom.  
  
Rubin was a good lover, Rory had no complaints. She'd had worse; she'd had better. Jess, mostly, but Rory pushed him to the back of her mind, because when she thought about him, she couldn't concentrate on anything else. Rubin undressed her, and made love to her slowly, and she forgot all about him. Later, as they lay in bed, tired and breathing hard, Rubin spoke up.  
  
"So, who's Tristian?" He asked, wrapping a piece of Rory's hair around his finger.  
  
"No one important. Just someone I used to know." Rory said absently, staring into Rubin's eyes.  
  
"Someone else you used to date?" Rubin asked her, gently stroking her breast. Rory smiled.  
  
"What do you mean, 'Someone else?'" She replied, smiling and slapping his hand away playfully. Rubin took a deep breath.  
  
"What I meant was.someone else.besides Jess." Rory was shocked. She sat up in bed and stared at him.  
  
"How do you know about Jess?" She asked him, surprised. Rubin sat up, too, and smiled sadly.  
  
"Well, first I found a book, that said Jess Mariano on the inside cover. I didn't think much of that, but then." Rubin said quietly.  
  
"But then what?" Rory demanded.  
  
"But then you called out for him in your sleep." Rory took a deep breath, but didn't say anything.  
  
"It's not like I think you cheat, Rory," Rubin continued, "I asked Paris about him and she told me everything. I don't care about him. I know you're over it. Right?"  
  
"Right." Rory replied shakily, but she lay back down on the bed, closed her eyes and went to sleep.  
  
The next day was every bit as hectic as the last. At the office, they had a lot of clients coming in, and Rory was ready to go crazy. When Tristian walked in she had to spend a bit of time catching up with him. Paris had been right; he did look good. She spent an hour or so catching up with him, and then Rubin showed up for a surprise visit. Rory always love it when he did that, because it took her mind of work. She kissed him enthusiastically and introduced him to Tristian. They got along well, and Rory went back to some work. At 11:30, Rubin knocked on her office door.  
  
"Hey, Rory, you work too hard.Let me take you out for lunch." Rory glanced at he watch. Lunch.  
  
"Shit, Lunch!" She exclaimed, standing up and knocking over some papers.  
  
"That's what I said." Rubin replied, confused.  
  
"No, I'm supposed to meet a client and her husband for lunch!" Rory said, grabbing her coat.  
  
"Oh, well that's ok. We can go some other time." Rubin began, turning to leave. He knew that when Rory was busy it was best for him to leave her alone.  
  
"Wait, Rubin. Why don't you come?" She asked, hopefully.  
  
"Sure." Rubin agreed, following her out the door.  
  
When Rory arrived at the restaurant, she was earlier than she thought. Patty hadn't even arrived yet, so she and Rubin sat down and ordered.  
  
"So, about last night." Rubin started, nervously.  
  
"Don't worry about it," Rory stopped him, "I'm sorry. I don't keep secrets from you, Rubin. I was just tense. And last night was amazing." She smiled, taking his hand. They waited, talking, for another half an hour before Patty and her husband finally arrived.  
  
"Oh, God, Miss.Gilmore, I'm so sorry we're so late, you see traffic was horrible." Patty started to make excuses, but Rory wasn't listening. She was staring at Patty's husband. Rubin noticed.  
  
"Rory, what's wrong?" He whispered to her, trying to get her to stop staring.  
  
"Jess." Rory breathed. ****** 


	6. cHAPTER 6

AN- Sorry I took so long to update. I know I've kinda been torturing you all with this next part. I want to thank you all so much for the great reviews. Even the bad ones, ouch, but thats life, huh? Anyway, On with it... ~~Lis  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
***********************  
  
Patty sat down. Jess sat down, too, never taking his twinkling eyes off Rory. That tiny, amused smile played at the corner of his lips.  
  
"Miss. Gilmore, I'd like you to meet my husband, Mr. Mariano." Patty said cheerily. Rory's heart fluttered as Jess held out his hand. She reached out, and took it slowly, never taking his eyes away from his. He sqeezed her hand tightly, and held it for a bit longer than the normal handshake. Rory glanced at Rubin, but he just grinned. Apparently he hadn't made any name connections. Rory cleared her throat.  
  
"Nice to meet you." She managed, with a faint smile, "This is Rubin, my...um, well, my..."  
  
"Boyfriend." Rubin finished for her, shaking hands with first Patty and then Jess. Rory thought she might die. She wanted to crawl under a big rock somewhere. Actually, what she wanted was to grab Jess and kiss him. But that wouldn't have been the best thing to do, considering.  
  
"Well, shall we get down to buisiness?" Patty asked, reaching over and taking Jess' hand, "This is the culprit. It's pretty much all his fault I'm even in this mess, right honey?" Jess smiled at her.  
  
"Right." He replied. Rory felt faint. It had been so long since she had heard that voice, yet it was in her dreams everynight. Rory forced herself to laugh.  
  
"Well, like I said, I'm going to have to know the names of your neighbors, and all the information..." She began, and Patty pulled out a huge file. They began going over it, while their meal came. Jess and Rubin began a conversation about whether the Rangers had any chance this season. Then Rubin glanced at his watch.  
  
"Oh, God, Rory, I gotta get back to work." He told her, standing up and kissing Rory quickly. Jess raised his eyebrows so that only Rory could see. Rubin didn't notice. Rory thanked God that he was a little off today.  
  
"It was nice to meet you two." Rubin said to Patty and Jess, and he left the restaurant. Patty smiled at Rory.  
  
"He seems really nice, doesn't he, Jess?" She asked, turning to Jess. Jess didn't smile.  
  
"You bet." he said flatly. Patty shot a glare at him and punched him lightly in the shoulder. Turning back to Rory, she added,  
  
"Sorry about my husband. He's socially constipated. Now, if you'll excuse me for a moment, I need to find a washroom." Patty got up, and made her way to the back of the restaurant. Jess smiled.  
  
"Hey." He said softly.  
  
"Hi." Rory replied in a whisper. She looked down at her lap, but Jess reached over and grabbed her hand.  
  
"Don't look away from me, Rory. How are you?" He asked, not letting go of her hand.  
  
"Not married." Rory replied.  
  
"Ouch." Jess said. Rory shrugged. She was trying to seem like she didn't care, but it was killing her. He didn't love her anymore, and she still loved him. She didn't want him to know that, but she couldn't help it.  
  
"You...you didn't write or call..." Rory began, her voice shaky. Jess sighed.  
  
"You know the drill, Rory. I didn't want to mess up your life. Do you know how much it killed me? Thinking of you everyday and not being able to call. Without me, you were free to find another guy, one who would be better for you..." He reasoned. Rory took a deep breath.  
  
"You thought about me?" She whispered, but Jess ignored her.  
  
"..And you did. This Rubin guy. He looks... successful." Jess finished.  
  
"And Patty's very nice." Rory told him. Jess looked at her skeptically.  
  
"Bullshit. She's not nice. She's hyper, annoying, she listens to the Backstreet Boys, and she hates to read. And as you know, she so damn vocal when..."  
  
"I don't need to hear about it." Rory interupted him, looking away, "If you think that then why did you marry her?" Jess sighed.  
  
"I got her pregnant, Rory. It was a quick thing, one night...but then she was pregnant. So I married her." Jess shrugged, saying it like it was no big thing.  
  
"Well, that's just great. That's the responsible thing to do I guess." Rory replied, flatly, " I'm glad you got your life together and I hope that you and Patty are happy."  
  
"Rory, I still love you." Jess interrupted. Rory stopped in the middle of her sentence.  
  
"You.you still." Rory managed, fighting back tears.  
  
"I still love you, "Jess went on, "and it's killing me. It should be us. It should be our happy life, and it should be me and you teaching Brandon about the sex pistols and "Obey the giant"." Rory smiled through her tears.  
  
"Your son's name is Brandon?" she asked, softly. Jess nodded.  
  
"That's cute." She remarked.  
  
"So is he." Jess replied quietly. They sat in silence until Patty came back.  
  
"Did you two find anything to talk about?" She asked, sitting down. Jess smiled at Patty.  
  
"I just told her some more of the details of the lawsuit." He told her, glancing at Rory.  
  
"Rory, dear, you're crying! What's the matter?" Patty asked, noticing. Rory wiped her eyes with her hand.  
  
"Nothing.It's just that I hate to see injustice and misuse of the law." She stood up from the table.  
  
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get back to the office." Rory told them, shaking Patty's hand. She turned to Jess.  
  
"It was nice to meet you." She said softly, reaching out to shake his hand. He held it tightly.  
  
"Likewise." Jess replied. Rory pulled her hand away and left the restaurant.  
  
  
  
"Rory, you've been crying. What's wrong?" Rubin asked later that night, when he arrived home from work. He went to her and hugged her.  
  
"Nothing..I..I'm just a little homesick, that's all." Rory assured him. Rubin held her a little longer before letting go and heading to the bedroom to put his briefcase there. He came out smiling.  
  
"Paris isn't going to be home tonight."Rubin said slowly and suggestively, wrapping his arms around Rory's waist and leaning in to kiss her. Rory turned her head away.  
  
"Did I do something wrong?" Rubin asked, pulling away. Rory sighed.  
  
"No...I just.I had a weird day, and I'm not in the mood." She said softly.  
  
"I can respect that." Rubin replied, smiling and hugging her tightly.  
  
"I think I'll just go to bed." Rory told him, and she turned to walk into the bedroom before Rubin could see her tears.  
  
  
  
The next day at work Paris noticed that something was wrong. At a slow part of the day when nothing was going on, she cornered her in a smaller office.  
  
"Rory, what's the matter? You're unfocused and depressed. And don't give me any of this crap about you not feeling well, cuz something's up. I can feel it." Paris demanded. Rory burst into tears, and the whole story came pouring out. It felt good to tell some one. When she was finished, Paris gave her a hug and a Kleenex.  
  
"Rory, it's Ok. You just have to be strong, and move on. You're with Rubin now. You just need some time." Paris said softly. Rory nodded.  
  
"Now, I've gotta go do some location research. I think you'll be fine here by yourself, there isn't anyone scheduled for today. Just work on some of the paperwork. You'll be here by yourself. Listen, I'm really sorry to leave you here."  
  
"Just go." Rory said, smiling and pushing her towards the door. Paris nodded.  
  
"Ok. Well, I'll see you at home. We'll talk more then. Bye!" With that, Paris was out the door. Rory settled down for a long day of paperwork.  
  
About an hour later, Rory heard a knock at the door.  
  
"Who is it?" She called cheerily. The door opened, and two men in suits entered. Rory smiled.  
  
"How can I help you, gentlemen?" She asked them. The first man walked around one side of her desk, and the other walked slowly around the other side.  
  
"I'll need you to come with us." The first guy said, as the second guy pulled a revolver out of his pocket. Rory panicked, and backed up into her chair.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" She demanded, grabbing the letter opener off her desk and holding it as a weapon. The first man grabbed her wrist and twisted it, and the letter opener clattered to the floor. Rory screamed as they hit her hard, and tied her wrists behind her back. She struggled, until the second man held the gun to her head.  
  
"Don't move. You're gonna cooperate, Ok Miss?" He threatened. Rory nodded slowly. They put duct tape over her mouth and blindfolded her, before pulling her out the door.  
  
Rory couldn't see a thing, but she knew she was pushed into a vehicle. If she could have talked, she would have asked where they were taking her. Since she couldn't, her mind began thinking through all the legal terms and the things that she would have the kidnappers charged with when she got away.  
  
"Turn here." She heard one of the men say.  
  
"I know where I'm going." The other one snapped back.  
  
"How much are we getting paid for this?" The first one asked.  
  
"Seven hundred dollars on delivery." The second one replied. Rory was confused, scared and curious. Where were they taking her? Who was paying them? Rory's mind brought up all of the cons, druggies and murderers that she had lost cases for over the past few years. Before she had time to really narrow down a suspect, the vehicle stopped, and Rory was pulled from the car.  
  
"Are you sure this is the right motel?" She heard one guy ask.  
  
"Yah. Room 37." The second guy told him. She was dragged in through a door and down what felt like a long hallway.  
  
"Here it is." One of the guys said. Rory heard a knock on the door and the door being opened. She was pushed through it, and into the arms of someone.  
  
"Where's our money?" She heard one of the men demand  
  
"You hurt her." Replied the person that was holding her. Rory went numb. She knew that voice; she would know it anywhere. The tape was ripped off her mouth, and the blindfold was pulled of. Rory coughed, and took big gulps of air. When she could breath again, she looked up at her captor.  
  
"Jess?" she exclaimed, her voice breaking. He ignored her.  
  
"The deal was not to hurt her." Jess said to the guys. One of them smiled cruelly.  
  
"She wouldn't cooperate. She's fine." He replied. Jess handed them an envelope.  
  
"Pleasure doing business with you." One of the men replied, and giving a little salute, they both left the room, closing the door behind them. Jess turned back to Rory.  
  
"What the hell is going on?" She demanded, "Dammit, untie me, Jess!" Jess did so, and Rory rubbed her wrists as she looked around. She was in a motel room. It was a cheap one, with bad art prints on the wall.  
  
"Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" Jess asked, stepping towards her. She stepped back.  
  
"Don't come near me. I'm fine. No thanks to you." Rory said coldly.  
  
"Rory, I'm sorry, but I had to talk to you."  
  
"So you had me kidnapped?" She demanded, "Let me out of this room, Jess. You're crazy."  
  
"I'm not stopping you. And I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you." Jess said, sitting on the side of the bed. Rory glanced at the door.  
  
"You just meant to scare me half to death?" she asked him, calming down a bit, "You know, Jess, I don't know how you do this to me. You always have."  
  
"Do what?"  
  
"Make me so confused. Like right now I don't know whether to be scared of you, and run for the door, or to love you so much and run over to you and kiss you." Jess smiled.  
  
"I like the second choice, "Jess offered, "Listen, Rory. I'm sorry. I couldn't go to your office, it would have looked suspicious. I do have a wife, and you have a boyfriend. I knew those guys, but I didn't think they'd hurt you. I would never have sent them if I had known that. I wasn't thinking, I just had to see you. I love you so much it hurts, and nothing..and I mean nothing Patty can do in the bedroom can help that." Rory walked over slowly to the bed and sat down beside him. He stared into her eyes, questioning her. Slowly, Jess leaned down and brushed his lips lightly over hers. Rory felt her whole body switch on. She reached up, grabbed his head ad pulled him back down into a longer, more demanding kiss. When she pulled away, he smiled.  
  
"How do you feel about adultery?" He asked mischievously.  
  
"I'm for that." Rory replied, breathing hard. She smiled softly, as she pulled herself up on the bed and lay back. Jess crawled towards her, stopped and looked down.  
  
"God, you're still as beautiful as ever." He commented, leaning down and kissing her neck. Rory moaned at the sensation, and lost herself completely to him. Jess kissed her lips again, and pulled her shirt over her head. He unclasped her bra, and threw it to the floor. Rory grabbed the hemline of his shirt and got it off him. He kissed her neck again, going downwards to her breasts and taking a nipple into his mouth, he sucked. Rory moaned. The sound made Jess hotter.  
  
"God, I love it when you moan." Jess commented, taking his mouth off her for a moment, " I love you, Rory. No matter what you do." Rory smiled.  
  
"I love you too, Jess." She muttered, softly, as he continued with what he was doing. When he was finished with her breasts, he moved his mouth lower. When he put his hands to the button of Rory's pants, she pushed them away and took them off herself. When she reached to his to do the same, he stopped her.  
  
"Not mine yet. I want to concentrate on you" Jess said softly. For the next few hours or so, Rory was completely lost in time. Jess made love to her, slowly, luxuriously, like they had all the time in the world. When they were both spent, they fell asleep in eachother's arms without a care in the world. 


	7. Chapter 7

AN- Sorry that this took so long coming. I'm just crap at being responsible. There's no excuse for me, I realize. Once I'm done writing, a friend of mine has to "Americanize" it, and it takes a while. But thanks to everyone who has given me wonderful reviews.  
PS- The Patty in my story is NOT Miss Patty. I wasn't really thinking when I made up the name. Sorry for the confusion.  
Anyway, you've all waited long enough, I'm sure.  
When Rory opened her eyes, she didn't know where she was. It was dark. She found someone in the bed beside her, and for a split second she figured that it was Rubin. But then she heard his breathing, and she knew it was Jess, and it all came flooding back to her. She glanced at the clock. It was nine PM.   
  
"What the hell have I done?" Rory muttered aloud. Jess stirred in his sleep, turned and wrapped his arms around Rory. She smiled. I'm not supposed to feel like this, she thought to herself. I'm supposed to feel guilty. She sighed deeply.  
  
"Jess?" She asked him, softly.  
  
"Hmmmm?" He answered, not opening his eyes.  
  
"I need to use the phone." Rory replied. Jess opened his eyes and smiled at her.  
  
"You look so beautiful." He told her, taking a strand of her hair and wrapping it around his finger, "Do you realize that this is our first morning?"  
  
"It's not exactly morning." Rory told him smiling.  
  
"But do you know that this is the first time we've actually been able to just lay here; be in the moment."  
  
"It's nice," Rory told him smiling, "But Jess..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"I need to use the phone." Rory told him, regretfully. Jess sighed, and closed his eyes.  
  
"It's on the dresser." He told her. Rory almost fell out of the bed trying to reach it. She picked up the receiver and dialed the number for her apartment. While it rang, she settled back down into the bed. Jess rested his arm over her stomach and pulled her to him. The phone rang three times before Rory heard Rubin's voice.  
  
"Hello?" He asked, sounding tired.  
  
"Hey, Rubin." Rory replied. Jess twitched and loosened his grip at the sound of his name.  
  
"God, Rory! Where are you? Paris and I are worried sick! Are you OK?" Rubin demanded, frantically.   
"I'm fine, Rubin. I'm just working on...um, Patty's case."  
  
"Oh...Jeez, don't do that to me ever again! You always call when you're gonna be late!"  
  
"I'm really sorry. I just forgot. Look, I'll be home later. Don't wait up." Rory said, switching ears with the phone.  
  
"Ok, "Rubin said, sounding disappointed, "Bye. See you soon. I love you, Rory." Rory looked at Jess, with his eyes closed, and his arms wrapped around her.  
  
"You too." She whispered, before hanging up the phone. She cuddled back down into Jess's arms. She loved him so much, and she never wanted to get up. She had made a huge mess of things. Just listening to Jess breath sent tingles up her spine.  
  
"Jess, where does Patty think you are?" She asked.  
  
"Working." He replied, keeping his eyes closed.  
  
"Where do you work?" Rory asked out of curiosity.  
  
"At a garage." Jess mumbled.  
  
"Where does Brandon go when both you and Patty are at work?"  
  
" A daycare." Jess replied, opening his eyes and sitting up. He pulled Rory up with him, and the sheet fell from her body revealing her breasts. Rory blushed, and pulled the sheet back up, out of habit. Jess smiled.  
  
"Ok," he began, "It's clear to me that we're not going to get anymore sleep. What do you want to know, Rory. Ask away."  
  
"A million things...What does Brandon look like, how did you feel when he was born." Then more softly, she asked, "Who would get custody if there was a divorce?" Jess stopped smiling, and sighed.  
  
"You know my record, Rory. She would. Patty would get Brandon, and that's my problem. I love him so much, Rory. When he was born, my world changed. He looks just like me, the hair and the eyes...I love him so much that sometimes I think my heart might burst. I love him more than anything." Jess told her. Tears came to Rory's eyes. She had never heard Jess speak so passionately before.  
  
"He sounds beautiful." She whispered.  
  
"He is. You have to meet him." Jess insisted.  
  
"Oh, yah, that would go over well," Rory laughed, wiping the tears from her eyes, "Hey, Brandon. My name's Rory. I'm your daddy's lover. Don't tell mommy."  
  
"Yah, well, I think that our lawyer could meet our son, too." Jess said, smiling. Rory grabbed him around the neck and kissed him hard. They kissed for a long time, before Jess lay back on the bed. Rory lay down too, and rested her head on his chest. She sighed.  
  
"Tell me I never have to get up." She told him.  
  
"You never have to get up." Jess replied, with a sigh.  
  
"Liar." Rory accused him.  
  
"Hey, since when have you ever known me to be credible?" Jess asked. Rory smiled and closed her eyes.  
**************  
  
It was one when Rory finally got home. She came in the door silently, and dropped her purse on the counter. She had driven back to her office, and cleaned and locked up. When she was there, she had noticed a post-it note on the desk. "Patty Mariano: 3:45" She wondered if Jess would be there, and she dropped the note on the kitchen table before going to bed. The next morning, Rubin woke her up.  
  
"Good morning, workaholic," He said softly, "Time to get to the office." He kissed her softly once, before leaving the room. Rory felt immensely guilty. Rubin hadn't done anything to deserve this. He had always been honest with her. Rory pushed the thoughts to the back of her head as she went to work. When business quieted down around noon, Paris sat down beside Rory.  
  
"You little liar." She accused her, crossing her arms.  
  
"What?" Rory asked, confused. Paris smiled, knowingly.  
  
"I know you weren't with Patty last night. If you were, it would have been in the logbook."  
  
"Maybe it was an emergency meeting." Rory replied, smiling. Paris looked at her for a moment. Nobody said anything.  
  
"Fine, Rory Gilmore. Keep your secrets. I'm just hurt you wouldn't tell me, your best friend, anything. Just know that you can tell me anything. I'm here for you."   
  
At about three, Rory decided that it was time to go for her meeting with Patty. It was at her house; Jess's house. She had left the address at the apartment, and had to go get it. When she got there, she was surprised to find Rubin sitting at the table.  
  
"Hey! What are you doing home?" Rory asked him. He didn't reply, or return the kiss that Rory had tried to give him.  
  
"What?" Rory asked, worried. Rubin held up the sticky note.  
  
"Patty's last name is Mariano." He replied, flatly.  
  
"So..." Rory faked confusion.  
"Her husband's name is Jess." Rubin said, raising his voice a little.  
  
"Was it? I didn't catch it..."  
  
"Don't play games with me, Rory. Jess Mariano. Name ring any bells? Kinda too big to be a coincidence." Now he was shouting.  
  
"There could be more than one person in the world named..."  
  
"Do you think I'm stupid, Rory?" Rubin yelled.  
  
"Rubin, I swear, it's a different guy...have I ever lied to you before?" Rory demanded. She immediately felt bad. It was horrible to use that. Why didn't she just tell him the truth? She loved Jess. She wanted to be with Jess. But Rubin was security. Rubin had always been there for her, in her perfect little life, and she wasn't ready to lose that.  
  
"No, Rory. No you haven't. But Paris told me how much you loved Jess. He's capable of making you lie." Rubin told her, in a softer voice.  
  
"I swear." Rory insisted. Rubin raised his eyebrows.  
  
"Fine. Then I'm coming with you."  
  
"Coming with me where?" Rory asked.  
  
"To their house. To your 'meeting'" Rubin replied, coldly.  
  
"Fine." Rory said, and she headed for the door.  
**************  
  
The drive to Patty's flat was quiet. Rory was frantically praying that Jess wouldn't be there, and she was sure that she was endangering both of their lives by driving in such an emotional state. Rubin just stared out the window. They arrived at the door, and Patty buzzed them up. The elevator ride was long and silent. When they got to the door, Rory knocked once. Patty answered it, with her child in her arms. Rory's throat went dry, and she tried to fight back tears. This was him. This was Jess's kid. He was beautiful, he looked just like Jess; especially his eyes.  
  
"Hello, Miss Gilmore." Patty greeted them cheerily, "Brandon, can you say Hi to Rory?" Brandon hid his face in his mother's shirt. Rory smiled.  
  
"He's beautiful." She whispered. Patty saw Rubin standing behind her.  
  
"Hello, Rubin, is it?" She asked. Rubin nodded.  
  
"Nice to see you again, Patty. That is one cute little boy." He said, stepping into the room. Patty smiled.  
  
"Thank you, "She replied, "Now, Rory, can you hold him for a minute, while I go get the paper's we'll need." Before Rory or Brandon could protest, Patty had passed him to Rory and left the room. Rory looked at Brandon.  
  
"Hey, Brandon. I'm Rory." She said to him, ruffling his hair.  
  
"He's a bundle of joy." Rubin remarked, flatly. Just then, Jess entered the room from the kitchen. He stopped short when he saw Rory standing there, holding his child. This was exactly how it was supposed to be. He would have run over, taken her into his arms and kissed her. But then, he noticed Rubin standing there.  
  
"Oh, hello Miss Gilmore. Rubin." Jess said in an upbeat voice, walking over to them. At the sound of his father's voice, Brandon fussed, and held his arms out.  
  
"Daddy..."He whined. Jess smiled, and took him from Rory. Rubin frowned as their arms touched, and he thought he saw something between their eyes. Rory, once again, fought off her tears as she watched Jess stand there holding his child. Rubin glanced around the room and noticed a bookcase. He wandered over to it. While he was selecting a book, Rory gave Jess a look. Jess figured that Rubin must suspect something. Rubin opened a book and flipped through it.  
  
"You read?" He asked, suspiciously.  
  
"A little." Jess replied flatly. Patty came back into the room.  
  
"Ok. Well, Rory, we can work at the kitchen counter, and leave these three men in here to do men things...watch football or something." She said, and Rory caught Jess's eye one more time, as she followed Patty into the kitchen. Rubin sat down on the couch, and Jess sat down too, after setting Brandon on the floor.  
  
"Want a beer?" Jess offered, trying to make conversation.  
  
"No thanks." Rubin answered, "So, Jess. Where are you from?"  
  
"Here in New York." Jess replied. Rubin thought he sounded guarded.   
  
"Lived here all your life?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah." Jess answered. This wasn't getting him anywhere. Rubin was frustrated. What was he supposed to say? Are you sleeping with my girlfriend? That would do it alright, but what if he wasn't? That would be stupid. No, he had to find out a different way.  
  
"So, the neighbors are suing, huh?" Rubin asked.  
  
"Yah, they like their quiet at night," Jess answered. Rubin laughed, and Jess grinned.  
  
"So Patty's pretty loud?" Rubin said.  
  
"I like to think I have something to do with it." Jess laughed.  
  
"Yeah. Rory is great. She doesn't make a lot of noise, but the sounds she does make...wow." Rubin remarked. Jess stopped smiling. Aha! Finally a reaction, Rubin thought.   
  
"Yeah?" Jess asked, nonchalantly. He picked up the remote for the TV and flicked it on. Rubin decided to keep going.  
  
"Yeah, I mean, she's amazing in bed. Knows just where to touch me. Sometimes we just go on all night..."  
  
"Hey!" Jess shouted, turning off the TV. Rubin felt like laughing. He'll admit it now, he thought.  
  
"...you know what? Miss Gilmore deserves her privacy. How am I supposed to look at her in court if you tell me all this stuff? It won't work, man. Switch the subject." Jess finished. Damn, thought Rubin. He suddenly got worried. What if he was wrong. What if Rory really didn't know this guy.   
  
"Sorry, man." Rubin apologized.   
  
"No problem." Jess shrugged, as he turned the TV back on to a basketball game. Jess hated basketball, but hey, that's probably what Rubin wanted to watch. How does he know, Jess wondered. I almost gave it away for a moment. Rory would have killed me, he thought. Every now and then, Jess glanced over at Brandon out of habit. He had been getting along fine before, he had accepted that he couldn't be with Rory. He had settled for Patty. But then, out of all the lawyers in New York, Patty had picked Rory. It was too much. Jess wanted a smoke, but there was no way he would smoke around Brandon, so he settled for gum.  
  
"Listen, Jess." Rubin said suddenly, after about a half an hour or so, "I know that this is going to sound really silly. But, um...Did you...or, are you...well, did you ever know Rory before she was your lawyer?" Jess pretended to be confused.  
  
"No. Why?" He asked.   
  
"Well, It's just that...Well, she knew this guy named Jess Mariano a while ago; they were kinda involved..."  
  
"And you think it's me?" Jess asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Stupid I know, I just..."  
  
"No, man. It's not me. Don't worry about it." Jess replied. Suddenly Rubin felt really stupid. He laughed.  
  
"Oh, God, I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me." Rubin apologized.  
  
"Forget it. Anyone would have made that mistake." Jess told him, smiling. A little while later, Rory and Patty emerged from the kitchen.  
  
"Hey!" Patty said, "Did you three find something to do while I was gone?"   
  
"Yah, we found lots of interesting things to talk about." Jess said coyly. Rubin stood up and went over to Rory. He smiled at her.  
  
"Ready to go?" Rubin asked, putting his arms around her. Rory was confused. What did Jess tell him? He obviously didn't think an affair was going on anymore. She smiled.  
  
"Yeah, all done." Rory replied. They walked to the door.  
  
"Hey, we should all get together and do something sometime." Patty said, happily. Rubin nodded.  
  
"Yes, we should. Call us sometime." He insisted, shaking hands with Jess. Then they left the flat. On the elevator, Rubin took Rory and kissed her.  
  
"I'm so sorry." He promised her, when their lips broke apart. Rory gave him a little half smile.  
  
"It's OK." She insisted. They got in the car and drove home.  
  
**************** 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N- I don't own these characters. Except for Rubin, he's mine. And Patty and Mr. Richards.But I'm disowning them. I'll keep Rubin, though. He's OK. So here's a new chapter. I know it's short and I'm sorry. If it's weird, it's because I'm trying to go somewhere with the story.  
  
By the way- I love good reviews, and I love constructive criticism...Thanks to everyone who has given me any, it keeps me going. But I do not appreciate flames or people who insult me flat out. It's kinda rude, so if you don't like the story, go elsewhere. Don't take the time to review if all you're going to say is how I've ruined Gilmore Girls, or how you think I'm a hormonal man. I'm not. Thanks, everyone.  
In the next few days, Rory was too busy with other cases to think about Jess. She met with Patty a few more times, and set up a meeting with her next door neighbors. Rubin trusted every word she said now, which only made her feel much guiltier. Guilt was something Rory was feeling a lot these days. Rubin took her out to dinner, bought her flowers, and apologized a lot. That didn't help. The evening the Rory had a meeting with Patty's neighbor, it was raining and dark. She got soaked walking from her car to the building, and she took the elevator to their floor. She looked at Jess' door on the way past and she was filled with a sense of longing. Yeah, Rory thought to herself sarcastically, that would be great if I just barged in and kissed him, while Patty watched. That's what she wanted to do. What she did was walk past the door to the next one. This must be it. Straightening her skirt, she knocked briefly on the door.  
  
"Go away!" Came a menacing male voice from inside. Rory cleared her throat.  
  
"Hello? Um, this is Miss. Gilmore.The Mariano's lawyer? We had a meeting." She called. She heard shuffling around, before the voice shouted back.  
  
"Come in!" Rory grabbed the knob and opened the door. The apartment was dark and musty, and Rory felt weird. Not scared, exactly, it was just strange.  
  
"So you're protecting those fucking morons." Said the voice. As Rory's eyes adjusted to the dark, she found that the voice belonged to a middle aged man. He was sitting at the kitchen table. The apartment was messy, garbage and clothes were strewn about on the floor.  
  
"Um, Mr. Richards?" Rory asked nervously. The man nodded, and motioned towards the chair. Rory sat down slowly, trying not to touch anything.  
  
"Ok, sir. Why do you feel that your rights to quiet enjoyment are being violated? Are they really that loud? Maybe we could settle." Rory went on, putting her briefcase on the table and opening it. Mr. Richards smiled cruelly.  
  
"Are they really that loud? You really need to hear them to judge for yourself, but yes they are that loud. She woman, she screams. All night, they go at it, and she screams. I don't know how that kid of theirs doesn't wake up." He said. Rory was freaked out. When this man spoke, he had an insane smile on his face, like that of a serial killer or a psychopath.  
  
"Now, sir. Is it not possible that Mrs. Mariano can't help it? She does have a rather high-pitched voice, but that's not her fault." Rory tried to reason with him.  
  
"It's her fault for doing their obscene acts in the middle of the night. Every night! And it's his fault. You must have met him, you can see how he his. Trouble. That boy's body screams lust." Mr. Richards shouted. Rory immediately blushed, and he noticed. Mr. Richards nodded slowly.  
  
"You've seen it," he said, smiling crazily, "You've seen it, and you've felt it. I can see it in your eyes. You blush. Does she know?" This frightened Rory.  
  
"Mr. Richards, you are out of line. I do not know what you are talking about, but it is not true. And I would be happy if we could conduct this meeting with a small amount of decency." Rory said. Her voice wavered. Mr. Richards just smiled knowingly. Rory continued.  
  
"Now, I think we should settle this before it gets to court. I mean, speaking reasonably, you have no case. No proof, and I just think that maybe."  
  
"Oh, I have proof. I have all the proof I need." Mr. Richards cut her off. He reached beside him on the floor and pulled up a tape player. Rory felt sick.  
  
"You.you taped it?" She asked him, incredibly. He nodded, and started to push the button.  
  
"No!," Rory shouted, "No. I mean, I don't really have to hear it."  
  
"You are their lawyer. You're gonna need to know this stuff." Mr. Richards told her, still smiling that creepy smile. Rory knew he was right. Any other case and she would have to hear it. But not this one. She couldn't. She couldn't hear what Jess did to this woman who was his wife every night. And he wouldn't want her to hear it. She wouldn't want him to hear her and Rubin.But she had to. She had to do this case, and she had to do it well and win it. If she didn't, Rubin would know. And worse, Patty would know, and leave Jess with Brandon. She would never do that to Jess.  
  
"Play it." Rory told Mr. Richards slowly. He reached over and pushed the button. Immediately the room filled with Patty's screaming.  
  
"Oh.Oh, God, Jess, yes! I.Oh, God, I love that! Yes! Oh..Oh! JESS! JESS, JESS!"  
  
"Turn it off." Rory shouted, tears coming to her eyes. Mr. Richards laughed insanely.  
  
"Turn it off!" Rory screamed, leaning forward and pushing the stop button on the tape player. Mr. Richards continued to laugh.  
  
"I see it in your eyes.hurts, doesn't it, Miss. Gilmore? Hits you right here." He pointed to his heart, and stood up. He slowly walked around the table towards Rory, who cringed.  
  
"Did he do that to you?" Mr. Richards asked, softly, coming closer to her, "Did he fuck you good?" Rory shook her head and backed up into the door. The man came until he was nose to nose with Rory.  
  
"Mr. Richards, this is inappropriate." Rory began, her voice shaky. She reached behind her to grab the doorknob, but he grabbed her arm.  
  
"Maybe you could describe it to me," He asked, "Tell me what could be so good that a person would scream so loud that it would keep me up all night.could you tell me that, MISS GILMORE!" Mr. Richards demanded.  
  
"Mr. Richards, let go of me!" Rory screamed at him. He smiled cruelly. Suddenly, there was pounding on the door behind Rory.  
  
"Mr. Richards? Rory! Rory, are you in there?" Jess' voice shouted. Mr. Richards backed away from Rory, still smiling. Rory stepped away from the door and yanked it open, running into Jess' arms.  
  
"Rory? What are you doing here? Are you ok? What did he do to you? WHAT DID HE DO?" Jess demanded, looking over at Mr. Richards, who had gone back to sitting at the table.  
  
"Nothing." Said Rory, shakily through her tears, "Nothing.I just.I need.my briefcase." Jess walked over to the table and picked it up, eyeing Mr. Richards suspiciously.  
  
"Lover to the rescue." He commented, still smiling. He turned and directed his comments to Rory.  
  
"Is that how they're paying you?" He asked cruelly.  
  
"Take me out of here, Jess." Rory said to him quietly, when he came back over to her. They left the apartment, slamming the door. Behind them they could hear Mr. Richard's insane laughter floating through the door. Jess pulled her into his apartment.  
  
"Jess, I have to go home." Rory said, trying to pull away from him towards the elevator.  
  
"No. Patty's at an overnight seminar, and you are too shaky to go home. You are going to come inside and tell me exactly what happened." Rory was too shaken to argue. A few moments later, Rory was seated on the couch, wrapped in a blanket with a mug of hot chocolate. Brandon played on the floor. Rory glanced at the clock. It was around eight. Jess walked over and picked Brandon up. He yawned.  
  
"Getting tired, buddy?" Jess asked him, hugging him. Rory smiled. When Jess talked to Brandon, he got this weird, soft voice. It was cute.  
  
"I'm just gonna put him to bed, now." Jess told Rory. She smiled.  
  
"Goodnight, Brandon." Rory said cheerily.  
  
"'Night, Wowy." Brandon said shyly, burying his face in Jess shirt. Jess laughed and carried him into his bedroom. A few moments later, he returned, and sat on the couch by Rory. He looked deeply into Rory's eyes.  
  
"Now, what did he do to you, Rory? I came over because I heard you screaming. If he hurt you, I swear to God, I'm going over there and I'm."  
  
"He didn't! Jess, he didn't hurt me. He just said some things about me and you, and.I dunno, I was just all worked up, he played me the tape, and I thought I could handle it, but I couldn't, and I just.freaked. He's scary, he's a psychopath." Rory told him, upset.  
  
"What tape?" Jess asked, confused. Rory blushed.  
  
"Nothing, I'm.I'm just upset. I don't want to see him until court, and then I never want to see him again." She insisted.  
  
"Rory, what tape?" Jess asked, more firmly. Rory looked away from him.  
  
"Jess, he.he taped you.Patty." Rory trailed off. Jess' eyes narrowed. He stood up, but Rory grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.  
  
"Don't!" She said, "you can't! He's gonna try to use it as evidence, but if we just hang on until then, keep our cool, we can call it invasion of privacy. Turn the charges around. If he doesn't win, you could sue him." Jess looked at Rory, and shook his head sadly.  
  
"God, Rory. You really are a lawyer, aren't you? Thinking about law and our case, when you should be worried about your safety. Jeez, you're so.unselfish." He told her, sadly. Rory sank back on the couch.  
  
"Am I, Jess? I think that I'm pretty selfish. I mean, look what I'm doing to your marriage? I'm not thinking of what's best for you, if Patty were to find out.and look what I'm doing to Rubin! He trusts me completely now, thanks to you, by the way. What did you say to him that day?" Rory asked.  
  
"Nothing. I denied that we knew each other before. And Rory, don't say that. You are thinking of what's best for me. YOU are best for me. Don't you dare think that what we're doing is hurting me! If it was, or if I cared, I wouldn't be doing it. I love you, Rory. Not being with you kills me. And that's the end of this conversation." Jess finished firmly, pulling Rory to him and kissing her. She kissed him back, and she could feel the passion building. Rory looked at the clock and pulled away, breathing hard.  
  
"Jess, I've got to go home." Rory told him softly. He nodded, keeping his eyes closed.  
  
"I know." He breathed, "I know. Go home." He opened his eyes and smiled.  
  
"Go home, and relieve your sexual tension with Rubin. I'll just stay here. Alone. All night, by myself." Jess said, faking a pout. Rory smiled, standing up.  
  
"I really am sorry." She told him.  
  
"Yah, yah. I'm not talking to you." Jess told her. A smile played on the corner of his lips as he folded his arms. Rory walked to the door.  
  
"Bye." She said softly, opening it. Jess came over, grabbed her arm and pulled her to him, kissing her hard. When he broke away, she looked up at him.  
  
"I thought you weren't talking to me?" She asked, coyly.  
  
"I said I wasn't talking to you, not that I wasn't kissing you." He replied, "Bye."  
  
"Bye." She said softly. He kissed her shortly, one more time, before she left.  
  
*********** 


	9. Chapter 9

After the episode with Mr. Richards, Rory had become more jumpy. It had been two weeks, and they had told Patty about it, saying that Jess had been the big hero and rushed to the rescue. Patty thought that that was great?her husband had saved their lawyer. She was really protective of Rory after that, being careful not to let her speak with Mr. Richards. Rory didn't mind, she didn't really feel like speaking with the crazy person. The worst thing to come out of this was that Rubin, having been made aware of what had happened, wouldn't let Rory out of his site. He almost wouldn't let her go to work, until Paris insisted that she would keep her eye on her. Since Rubin had been so watchful, Rory hadn't been able to see Jess alone since that night. When Paris and Rory arrived at the office, they unlocked the door, and found a dozen roses addressed to Rory.  
  
"Awww?" Paris exclaimed, "Rubin is so sweet." Rory picked up the flowers and looked for a name.  
  
"They're not from Rubin?" Rory told her, putting them on the desk. Paris raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Oh?" She asked, seeming not very surprised, "Whoever could they be from?" Rory looked at her shoes.  
  
"Jess." Rory answered, looking really guilty. Paris got a smug look on her face.  
  
"A Ha! I knew it!" She exclaimed, "Rory, you little slut!" Rory hit her on the arm.  
  
"Ow, I was only joking!" Paris said, rubbing her arm. Rory slunk down in her office chair and sighed.  
  
"I know you were. It's just that?I feel like its true." Paris frowned.  
  
"Rory, you know it's not true. You love Jess; always have, always will. It's not your fault. And yah, it's unfortunate for Rubin, but how are you supposed to help it?" Paris told her, before going into her own office. Rory and Paris both had a lot of casework that day, and got down to work. A little after noon, Paris came into Rory's office.  
  
"Rory, I need your help. I have a million things to do, and I totally forgot about lunch with Tristan. Can you go?" She asked, out of breath. Rory thought about it. She did have a lot to do, but she needed to get out.  
  
"Sure I'll go." She decided. Paris smiled.  
  
"Thanks. I owe you one. You're meeting him at Café Seven in twenty minutes." She told her. When Rory arrived at the restaurant, Tristan was already there.  
  
"Hey, Mary." He greeted her, standing up to give her a hug.  
  
"Stop it," She told him with a smile, "You know I hate that." Rory sat at the table beside him.  
  
"So how was military school?" She asked, while they ordered coffee. Tristan shrugged.  
  
"You know, the usual. Marching, discipline?nothing I couldn't handle." He told her. Rory laughed.  
  
"Wow?you and discipline. Not usually two things that people would associate." Tristan smiled.  
  
"Oh, I don't like to brag, but no one can break me. Not even some highly prestigious New York military school. There were all these annoying little prep school brats that thought they were bad-asses." He said in an offhand manner. Rory grinned.  
  
"Sort of sounds like someone I know?" She teased, sipping her drink.  
  
"Please, Mary. Give me more credit than that," He said, raising an eyebrow, "These kids were really annoying. Me and Jess always rolled our eyes at their incompetence." The word Jess caught her ear. Jess. New York. Military school?.Luke had sent Jess to a military school in New York. "Jess who?" She interrupted Tristan. He looked curiously at her.  
  
"Jess Mariano. He was only there for about three months, but we were roommates." Tristan said, "Why?"  
  
"I know him. Really well, actually. He's a?friend of mine." Rory told him. Tristan smiled.  
  
"A 'friend', huh? Hmmm?Wow, Rory. You deserve more credit than I give you." He said, coyly, leaning in across the table. "Why's that?" Rory asked, annoyed.  
  
"Because the Jess I knew would have had you upside down and halfway to happy land within three minutes of meeting you. That's just the affect he had on women. I was always jealous." Tristan finished with a grin, "So, tell me the truth. You slept with him, didn't you." The blush on Rory's face was enough for Tristan.  
  
"I knew it." He declared, "I'd congratulate him right now for deflowering Star's Hollow's resident Mary if I knew where he was. I'd like to see him, now that we're both out."  
  
"63 Alban Street, apartment 6." Rory told him.  
  
"You know where he lives? Do you still talk to him much?" Tristan asked.  
  
"All the time?I'm his and his wife's lawyer." Rory informed him. Tristan laughed.  
  
"Wow," he commented, shaking his head, "I'm going to need some time to digest this. Jess Mariano has a wife. Rory "Mary" Gilmore is a mistress in an affair. This should be a bad soap opera. Wow?and you think you know a person. Well, Ok, actually I didn't ever know you very well. But, still, wow." Rory shrugged.  
  
"Yah, well, I try not to think about it. Now, shall we get down to business? Let's go over this case." She said, and they started to discuss it. About fifteen minutes into it, Tristan stopped.  
  
"Wait a minute." He said, looking up from their papers.  
  
"What?" Rory asked.  
  
"You have a boyfriend. Paris told me. I don't remember what his name was, but it wasn't Jess?"  
  
"Rubin." Rory said, looking guiltily into her lap.  
  
"That's who it was," Tristan said, "Now, what does he think of your affair? I bet he doesn't know."  
  
"Well, what kind of mistress would I be if I told my boy friend." Rory told him, smiling.  
  
"Good point. I wonder what he'd think of Jess." Tristan said, smiling.  
  
'Actually, he likes him," Rory told him, "They're kinda friends." Tristan just shook his head.  
  
"What is this world coming to." He commented.  
  
"I don't know." Rory said with a sigh, "And I don't know what I'm doing. It's horrible, and it's a mess, and you're the only one I've told, so don't tell anyone."  
  
"I won't, Rory."  
  
"Tristan, do you think I'm a slut?" She asked quietly, picking up her coffee. Tristan looked at her sympathetically.  
  
"No. I'm just a little jealous that Jess got to you first." He told her smiling. Rory laughed.  
  
"Shut up." She said with a smile.  
  
A/N- Yah, so this is the shortest chapter in the history of, well?ever. It was going to be long, but I had to put up something cuz it was driving me and everyone else crazy. And for those of you who are wondering, there is nothing that is going to happen between Tristan and Rory?just friends. Thanks.  
  
Lisden. 


	10. Chapter 10

The Mariano court date was a week away. Rory had never been busier; new clients kept coming in and the old ones were keeping her on her toes. One day, during one of the few small quiet times she had, the office phone rang.  
  
"Gellar and Gilmore, how may I help you?" Rory answered it, lightly.  
  
"Hello, I think I may need some help. You see there's this crazy lady named Emily Gilmore, and she keeps calling me and asking about my daughter, and if she's doing alright, and I tell her I don't know because this girl is so damn busy all of the time. I think I might sue her."  
  
"Hi, mom." Rory replied, rolling her eyes.  
  
"Hey, honey. How's the law business going? Have you represented any famous people? Just remember to always turn down R Kelly...He scares me." Lorelei warned Rory cheerfully.  
  
"Things are fine. Really busy, but fine. And I talked to you the day before yesterday, so why in Grandma flipping out?" Rory asked, sitting back in her chair.  
  
"Well, you know her. The littlest indication that she isn't the center of the universe, and it's 'Danger, Will Robinson'." Lorelei told her. Rory laughed.  
  
"Well, let her know that I'm doing great, and that I'll call her when I get the chance. What's new in town?"  
  
"Not much, really. Miss Patty has started a new 'Stars Hollow Idol' contest. The judges are Taylor, Kirk and Mrs.Kimm. She still hasn't got a hold of Simon Cowell." Lorelei replied. Rory rolled her eyes.  
  
"I think Miss Kimm would be a pretty good replacement for him." She said thoughtfully. She heard Lorelei laugh.  
  
"And you haven't even seen Kirk's Paula Abdul costume yet." She commented.  
  
"Sounds like a lot of fun," Rory remarked wistfully, "I really wish I could be there. I hate to think of you spending all those nights alone. No one to talk to, no one to make you coffee..." When Rory said this, she heard her mom go into this guarded little giggle.  
  
"Mom?", She asked, suspiciously, "What? What is going on?"  
  
"Well, honey, you know, maybe I'm not entirely alone here." Lorelei allowed, clearing her throat nervously. Rory narrowed her eyes.  
  
"What do you mean? Do you have a boyfriend, and didn't tell me about it?"  
  
"Now, C'mon, honey, it's no big deal..." Lorelei replied.  
  
"No big deal? Mom, I can't believe you didn't tell me! That's awesome! Now who is he, and when can I meet him, and how long have you been seeing him?" Rory asked, feeling overly happy for her mother.  
  
"Well," Lorelei started, "You see it's..."  
  
"Lorelei, I hope that you did not expect me to go to Patty's stupid 'Idol' thing this afternoon. Cuz I'm not going. And I don't feel bad about it. In fact, I'm taking pleasure in not going." Came a familiar voice from the background. Rory gasped.  
  
"MOM! Is that Luke?" She demanded. Rory couldn't hold back the smile that came to her face.  
  
"Yeah." Lorelei replied, guiltily.  
  
"That's great! That's greater than great? It's about time!" Rory laughed, "Well, mom, I should let you go. I have to get back to work. But this doesn't let you off the hook. Just so you know, I'm calling you back, and you are going to tell me every little detail. I love you."  
  
"I love you too, Rory." Lorelei said before hanging up. When she put the receiver in the cradle, Lorelei turned to Luke.  
  
"So she knows?" Luke asked, walking over to her. Lorelei nodded.  
  
"She knows. And you know what, I think she's happy about It." she told him, wrapping her arms around Luke's waist.  
  
"Good." Luke replied, before kissing Lorelei hard on the lips. ******************  
  
"So how's Jess holding up?" Rubin asked Rory, later that night as they were snuggled on the couch watching a boring TV movie. Rory looked at Rubin strangely.  
  
"Why do you ask?" She inquired, narrowing her eyes. Rubin shrugged.  
  
"I don't know. I just thought you might."  
  
"And why did you ask me about Jess? Why didn't you ask about Patty? Rubin, are you still on that 'you are having an affair with Jess' kick? Cuz if you are, drop it!" Rory demanded. Rubin threw his hands in front of him, defensively.  
  
"Whoa! Slow down, Rory. I'm sorry. I'm just.you know. Covering my bases. I'm the jealous type. I can't help it." He told her. Rory took a deep breath, and stood up from the couch.  
  
"No, you know what? I'm the one who's sorry. I'm way too defensive. I'm gonna go get some more popcorn." She left the room, and Rubin stared blankly at the TV, thinking. Why had Rory reacted like that? She had flipped out. That either meant that she was completely offended by the suggestion, or.The phone rang, interrupting Rubin's trail of thought. That was ok; he wasn't sure he wanted to think those thoughts anyway.  
  
"Hello?" He answered, after taking a deep breath.  
  
"Rubin, hey." Came Jess' voice through the line. Rubin's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Hey." He replied. Uh oh, Jess thought, he sounded kind of dangerous.  
  
"Listen, I was wondering if I could talk to Rory for a minute. She, uh.well, I have to go over my testimony again, I want to make sure everything is ok." Jess said hurriedly.  
  
"Hey, Jess, you sound really nervous. You must be stressed about this case." Rubin remarked, coolly. Jess wanted to smash his head against the wall. He was so stupid. Why had he called? Now Rubin was probably suspicious again. Rory had told him not to call.  
  
"Yah, I am. We have to win this, for Brandon's sake." Jess told him, clearing his throat nervously. At this point, Rory walked back into the room.  
  
"Here's some more.Who's on the phone?" Rory asked. Rubin said nothing, just handed the phone to Rory.  
  
"Hello?" She said into it, scrunching up her face into confusion.  
  
"Oh, Jeez, Rory, hi. Don't say anything. I'm really really REALLY sorry, but I had to call you." Rory heard Jess' voice plead.  
  
"Oh, hi, Jess. Yes, I think we have all the main details worked out." Rory replied for Rubin's sake. She heard Jess' sigh of relief.  
  
"Please don't be mad at me.I didn't know that he was going to answer, and I miss you. I'm going totally crazy, here. I love you." He told her. Rory fought hard to keep from answering him back, or reacting in any way.  
  
"Yes, your testimony." She said to Jess, as Rubin watched her, "I think it'll be fine, Jess. If Patty sets up a solid base for the jury, then we'll be fine."  
  
"This is so weird. It's like, army code. Ok, just cough twice if you love me, too. I'm kidding, don't really." Jess laughed. Rory smiled. She couldn't help herself.  
  
"I do." She replied, quietly. She figured that was safe to say, and Rubin didn't seem to respond any differently.  
  
"Ok, well, I should go before we get into any more trouble. I do love you, Rory. I need to see you. Soon. Call me some how, when you get the chance." Jess said, quietly.  
  
"Alright. It's no problem, anytime I can be of service, just call. I'm glad to help." Rory replied.  
  
"Goodbye, Rory."  
  
"Goodbye, Jess."  
  
Rory kept the tears out of her eyes as she hung the phone up. She turned to Rubin.  
  
"He's freaking out. Most clients do that this soon before a court date." Rory told him, sitting back down. Rubin nodded, but didn't return her smile, and they continued to watch the movie.  
  
"Tristan, I need a favor." Rory declared when he picked up the phone. She was at the office, and after days of consideration, she had figured out what to do.  
  
"Ok, Mary, calm down. Name it, I'd be happy to help." Tristan replied, over the line.  
  
"I wouldn't even be asking, but it's just that I don't know what else to do. I need to see Jess, but I can't call him because Rubin is really suspicious. I was wondering if."  
  
"I could call him, and set something up? Tsk Tsk. I can't believe you would do something that sneaky." Tristan joked, with a little laugh.  
  
"Tristan."Rory said, pleadingly.  
  
"Rory, of course I'll help you. Why wouldn't I? You know I'm into all this sneaky stuff. I'll get ahold of Jess, and then I'll call you back." He told her.  
  
"You know I." Rory started to say, but Tristan cut her off.  
  
"I know, I know.I'm amazing, I'm wonderful, what would you ever do with out me." he joked. Rory sighed.  
  
"Just, Thank you." She said.  
  
"Don't mention it." Tristan replied.  
  
********************** 


End file.
